Manifestations of Apprehension

First Women Navigator Students A quick look at the history of women in the Air Force will lead to an appreciation for the timeline of Air Force firsts for women. March is Women's History Month. A February 2006 publication, Travis AFB, CA, recognized women's many contributions while serving our military. The following list highlights those achievements up to the introduction of women into UNT and their graduation as navigators: 12 June 1948: Congress passes the Women's Armed Services Integration Act, establishing Women in the Air Force. 8 July 1948: Esther Blake becomes the first woman to enlist in the Air Force. 1968: The first Air Force woman is sworn into the Air National Guard with the passage of Public Law 90-130, which allows the ANG to enlist women. 5 May 1970: Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps expands to include women after test programs at Ohio State, Drake, East Carolina, and Auburn Universities prove successful in 1969. 2 March 1971: The USAF introduces a policy permitting women who become pregnant to remain on active duty or to return within 12 months of discharge. 17 March 1971: Jane Leslie Holley becomes the first woman commissioned through the AFROTC program. She graduated from Auburn University, AL. 18 March 1971: Captain Marcelite C. Jordon becomes the first woman aircraft maintenance officer after completing the Aircraft Maintenance Officer School. 7 April 1971: 2nd Lieutenant Suzanne M. Ocobock becomes the first woman civil engineer in the Air Force and is assigned to Kelly AFB, TX. 16 July 1971: Jeanne M. Holm, director of Women in the Air Force, became the first woman promoted to brigadier general. 29 September 1976: The first two groups of women-pilot candidates enter undergraduate pilot training at Williams AFB, AZ. 10 March 1977: The first women navigator candidates report to Mather AFB, CA to begin Undergraduate Navigator Training. 2 May 1977: 1st Lieutenant Christine E. Schott becomes the first woman undergraduate pilot training student to solo in the T-38 Talon. 2 September 1977: The first class of women pilots graduates at Williams AFB. 12 Oct 1977: The first class of five USAF women navigators graduates, with three of the five assigned to Military Airlift Command aircrews. The 1970s were a turning point for military women due to greater equality and opportunity through legislation and a change in perception of how American women saw themselves, their roles, and their potential in the USAF. The first group of women who entered UNT was assigned to another section in my squadron. This was a new endeavor by the Air Force, and it had no lack of attention from all levels of management in the Wing, our squadron, the local press, including TV coverage, and news media across the country. Almost a full year ahead, an article appeared in the 13 June 1976 edition of the New York Times and stated: Air Force to Train Six as Women Navigators appeared. The Associated Press in Sacramento published the article as follows: “Six women officers who are to be chosen as the first women Air Force navigators will start training at Mather Air Force Base here next March. After completion of the 31‐week course, the women navigators will be assigned to such aircraft as the C‐141 cargo carrier or the WC‐130 weathership, the Air Force said Tuesday. They will not be put on combat planes. The six will be chosen in October by selection boards at the Air Force personnel center at Randolph Air Force Base, Tex. The Air Force said they are part of a larger test group of 26 women officers. The 20 others will be assigned to pilot training bases, with the first ten starting pilot training at Williams Air Force Base, next month." There were periodic interviews with the women as well as with their instructors and supervisors. The women held their own and did well in training; however, one fell back in training and ended in my section due to illness. Some of the men navigator trainees considered the women unnecessary competition for aircraft they might have wanted since the women, at that time, could not be assigned to fighters. My response to that was simple. "You're still competing with someone in the class; it doesn't matter if it's a male or female. Study your butts off to place near the top of the class to ensure your best chances of getting your choice of aircraft." I spoke from experience from my training in UNT years before!